Emirates forges China codeshare

DUBAI, 7 February 2019: Emirates and China Southern Airlines have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance a comprehensive reciprocal codeshare agreement.

It sets the scene to open up new
destinations for passengers travelling between China and the Middle East and
Africa.

The partnership with the Guangzhou-based
carrier also allows Emirates’ passengers to enjoy seamless connectivity on
domestic flights within China, adding eight new destinations to its global
network.

The Chinese cities covered by the codeshare
agreement include Fuzhou, Chongqing, Kunming, Qingdao, Xiamen, Chengdu, Nanjing
and Xi ‘an during the initial phase of the partnership, subject to necessary
government approvals.

Passengers travelling from China will have
more choice and travel seamlessly with minimum connection times, when flying to
destinations in Emirates’ Middle East network such as Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam,
Muscat, Kuwait and Cairo. The codeshare agreement also includes flights to
African destinations such as Seychelles and Lagos, operated by Emirates.

With the UAE’s visa-free policy for Chinese
visitors, passengers can also enjoy hassle-free stopovers in Dubai, and
experience what the city has to offer before flying to their final
destinations. The codeshare partnership will provide customers with the
simplicity of purchasing connecting flights using one reservation, and a smooth
ticketing, check-in, boarding and baggage check experience during the entire
journey.

“We’re pleased to establish a partnership
with China Southern Airlines, allowing Emirates’ customers to benefit from
increased choice, flexibility and ease of connection to different cities across
China’s provinces, by connecting in Guangzhou,” said, Emirates’ divisional
senior vice president of strategic planning, revenue optimisation & aero
political affairs, Adnan Kazim.

The addition of the eight domestic routes in
the initial stage expands Emirates’ reach in China, beyond the three Chinese
hub cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

“In addition to enhancing our global
network, China Southern’s customers will be able to seamlessly travel to
destinations within the Middle East and Africa and beyond on a single ticket,”
he noted.

It represents Emirates first codeshare
agreement with a China-based airline, which is also the largest airline in
China by passenger numbers.

Emirates currently has codeshare agreements
in place with 23 partners around the world. With the new codeshare partnership
with China Southern Airlines, Emirates customers will be able to enjoy
connectivity to over 160 destinations in Asia Pacific. Emirates operates
twice-daily flights to both Beijing and Shanghai in addition to one daily
flight to Guangzhou, all operated by the iconic Emirates A380 aircraft.